


The Woods

by FireflyCity



Series: What Makes a Family - Until Dawn Pack Au [2]
Category: Until Dawn (Video Game)
Genre: AU, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Alternate Universe - Wolves, Family, Family Dynamics, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Jess-centric, Jessica-centric, Minor Violence, Pack AU, Werewolf, Werewolf AU, Werewolf Turning, Wolf Pack, Wolves, wolf family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-03
Updated: 2016-04-03
Packaged: 2018-05-30 22:12:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,307
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6443902
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FireflyCity/pseuds/FireflyCity
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Don’t go into the woods." That’s what Jess's mom always told her. But what happened when the woods came to you?</p><p>An au where they’re all werewolves and in a pack because I like wolves. Part of my "What Makes a Family - Until Dawn Pack Au" 2/8</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Woods

Oo0oO

_Jess_

_Don’t go into the woods_. That’s what all the responsible types used to say. _There are scary things out there. Dangerous things, things that could tear a little girl apart_. But all the danger in her life never came from the woods.

 _Don’t go into the woods_. There was something about don’ts that always made you need to. Something tantalizing about the word no. Wasn’t it always easier to ask for forgiveness than permission?

It was cold that night. Fall weather, but still colder than her liking. Laughter kept her warm, she and her friends dancing in and out of streetlights like they were on a stage. In a way they were. It was a Friday, all the city kids were out on these days. Looking for trouble in all the wrong dark corners. The woods weren’t as scary as all the adults told them they were.

Jess was good at feigning courage. Pretending she didn’t have her mother’s golden rules etched in the folds of her palms. _Stay in the light. Stay with the group. Stay away from strangers._

She recited them to her friends like they were a joke. As if her eyes didn’t dart to every alleyway spotting for men with sharp objects. As if she didn’t hold her keys between her knuckles like they were claws. As if she didn’t walk in the back just to make sure she could keep them all in eyesight at once.

 _Don’t go into the woods_. But what happened when the monster greeted you with a smile? Held your hand? Promised to protect you? At some point you forget where the fences end and the woods begin.

Running into them was an accident. As easy as turning a corner. Kids the same age have a way of gravitating towards one another. Boys from the same school. Troublemakers like the kind Jess’s mom was sure she’d grow up to be.

They were headed to the same place. The movies were always a hit with _their_ type. Naturally they decided to walk together. Safety in numbers and all that good stuff.

The boy from her chemistry class was the brave one. Brave enough to walk beside her even when she pretended she wanted to be alone. Brave enough to take her hand when she hesitated.

“C’mon Jess.” His touch was warm as he dragged her into the theatre. Jess couldn’t help herself, she blushed.

The movie was nothing special. They usually weren’t. Some shitty horror film with a useless female lead. God, Jess hated that stuff.

Jess took his suggestion to get some fresh air at face value. She left her phone and purse in the theatre. She figured 5 minutes wouldn’t kill her.

She’d forgotten how cold it was. Ever the gentleman, he offered her his jacket. She called him on it too.

“What a gentleman.” She batted her eyelashes in his direction. That one she’d learned all on her own.

He laughed. She laughed back at him. They got to talking, like people do. Then they got to kissing. Like people do. And then his hand traveled places it shouldn’t have.

Jess remembered the feeling well. Of all the cold rushing back to her at once. She pushed him away. He pushed back. She yelled at him. He wasn’t getting it. His hands were still around her waist, up her shirt. They struggled, she yelled. And then she pushed him. _Hard_.

He screamed when he hit the ground. Jess swore. She rushed to him. Told him she didn’t mean to hurt him. That if he’d just stopped she wouldn’t have pushed him. Jess went to apologize. And then the boy from her chemistry class wasn’t there anymore. And then the monster showed its face.

What happened next was a blur. Yellow eyes in the darkness, a snarl like the sound of distant thunder. And then she was bleeding. And then she was alone.

 _Don’t go into the woods_. That’s what her mom always told her. But what happened when the woods came to you?

Her body knew what was happening before her brain did. She ran as fast as she could. The pain was enormous, like fire skating across her skin. And then the girl was gone. And then the woods consumed her.

Oo0oO

It took Jess two days to figure out what happened to her. And two more to pull herself together enough to make it back home. Her family had been worried sick. Her mom cried when she saw her, all cut up and half-starved. Jess didn’t have the energy to hug her back. She wasn’t sure who had failed who.

They let her stay home from school. No one bothered to argue with her, not after the lie she invented to explain her absence. The only scary part was how close it was to the truth.

“It’ll be okay.” Her mother’s embrace was soft, like she was afraid of breaking her any further. “It’s all over now. You’re safe.”

 _But it’s not_. Jess shivered at her touch. _And I’m not_.

For the first week, Jess wouldn’t leave her room. Her dad wanted to call a psychologist, like it was the sort of thing that could be fixed with reassuring words and little white pills. Jess was in her mind to suggest a bullet. Preferably silver.

But that wasn’t the worst part. As much as it terrified her, she didn’t _want_ to die. She wanted answers. And the only one with them was gone.

Through word of mouth she discovered he skipped town, he and his whole family. She figured they were afraid she’d share their secret. Jess liked to trick herself into thinking they didn’t know that they’d changed her. That if they knew, they’d come back for her. Explain everything. Treat her like family. Like she was part of their pack. That’s what wolves traveled in, wasn’t it? Packs?

When she realized they weren’t coming back Jess figured she should find one on her own.

Every night she traveled out, searching. Venturing farther and farther from home with each passing cycle. She headed north, in their direction. Towards the mountains. Towards the forests.

Don’t go into the woods. The irony of it almost brought her to tears. _Sorry mom_. _They didn’t leave me with much choice._

Soon enough she found them, the wolves. Not him, never his pack. But others.

Jess was foolish enough to think they’d help her. That they’d see one of their own, lost and alone, and lend a hand. That they’d explain things, maybe even invite her to their pack. She couldn’t have been more wrong.

“Hey.” It was late. She only had a few hours left until dawn. “Hey can you help me? Please? I’m lost. I’m trying to get back to Sandbrooke.” It was somewhere west she imagined. Even with her improved senses, the wilderness still had a way of turning everything around.

“Sandbrooke?” One of them, a brass-furred male echoed her. “Never heard of it.”

“It’s near Winston.” Jess batted her tail impatiently.

“Never heard of it.” He shook his head.

His partner, a bulkier, white-furred male, growled. “Don’t waste your time with her Alex. She’s deadweight as it is. She’s fresh-turned.”

“I’m what?” Jess stepped back.

The first one, Alex, looked startled. “Really?” A look of disgust passed over him. “How can you tell?”

“Use your fucking nose.” The white-furred one snarled. “She’s still got that human smell all over her.”

Alex took a long sniff. After a moment, he gagged. “Oh Jesus you’re right.”

“Um…what’s going on?” Jess couldn’t help herself, she felt her tail sink between her legs.

“We’re talking about you honey.” A sly smile crept across the second wolf’s face. “And the fact that you’ve just been bitten.”

“I…” She didn’t think they could tell. Or rather, she hadn’t been sure that mattered. Had _they_ not been bitten? Jess was pretty sure that was how it worked. Werewolves bit humans to make other werewolves. Then why would they call her out on it. Uncertain, Jess retreated slightly.

“Hm. Don’t know why they bothered.” The brass-colored one slunk around her, looking disappointed. “Look at her. She wouldn’t be worth much as a breeder. Much less a hunter.”

Jess retreated further. It was true, she was smaller than most other wolves she’d seen, her frame much thinner and fur sleeker then either of her present company. She thought it was what she was meant to look like. She’d hoped that made her beautiful.

“That’s not the bite’s fault.” The second one rebutted. “That’s just because she’s young. And a she-wolf.”

“What?” Jess felt her fur stand on end.

“Ah right.” The first conceded. “Waste of a gift. If you could call turned humans a gift.”

“And with _that_ coat?” The second eyed her blonde fur. “No wonder the guy who changed you left.”

Jess felt her heart stop dead.

“Take it back.” She shivered.

“Hm?” The white-furred one prompted her.

“Take. It. Back.” She raised her tail, drawing her lips back in a soft snarl.

“Ooh did that make you angry?” The second one coaxed her again, amused. “You gonna fight us?”

It was a challenge, plain and simple. Jess took it.

Oo0oO

 _Don’t go into the woods._ That’s what all the responsible types used to say. Jess tried to listen. That’s what she told herself, as she limped back home. That she’d tried.

She was bleeding, bad. There was a wound along her back left leg that wouldn’t seem to close. Jess grunted through the pain. Their laughs haunted her every step. “ _Greenie”. “She-wolf”_. Each nickname accompanied by a cruel snap of their jaws. “ _Weak”. “Worthless”_. “ _Stupid”._ Her mind recited it back to her like a lullaby.

 _“Disgusting”_. Eventually she collapsed. She’d make it home tomorrow.

Oo0oO

Slowly, the months passed. And then it was winter. Finally. Jess released a breath she didn’t know she’d been holding in. She supposed she should have been more disappointed. After all, the snow made hunting harder, forced her to stoke her fires higher and higher when she was home. But for once, the cold was refreshing.

She’d convinced her parents to let her move in with her grandparents. They were up north a ways, near the mountains. As far from the city as she could get. Her parents thought it was exactly what she needed, especially after what happened that fall. For once she couldn’t agree more.

Her grandparents were happy to have her. They were the simple sort, the kind that didn’t question her sneaking out in the middle of the night, hardly blinked at the calloused forming on her hands and feet. If they noticed the occasional bloody clothes in the drier, they kept their mouths shut. Jess figured she was lucky to have them.

It was the height of the season when she heard it. The snowfall, though light, nearly disguised it. But the sounds were unmistakable to her. The snickers caught in the wind. The snap-snap of jaws near a nervous target. The smell of fear and fresh blood.

“Quit it!” A female voice protested, anger and distress tainting her words.

“Aww does this hurt?” A husky, male voice taunted.

“Run back to your pack greenie. I’m sure they’ll protect you.” Another chimed in.

“Leave me alone!” She cried out again, sounding desperate.

They laughed again.

Her feet seemed to know what she wanted to do even before her mind did. One moment, Jess was in the shadows. Out of sight, out of mind, thinking to run. The next put her in the middle of them.

“Back off.” Jess spat out the words, putting herself physically between the she-wolf and her assailants. They stopped laughing.

“This one of your pack?” One with black fur sized her up. “Another greenie?”

“How nauseating.” The second chimed in.

Jess didn’t even flinch. “This is your last warning. Back. Off.”

“Or you’ll what?”

It was another challenge. Just like before. Their only mistake was thinking she wouldn’t take it seriously.

Oo0oO

 _Don’t go into the woods_. That’s what all the responsible types used to say. _There are scary things out there. Dangerous things, things that could tear a little girl apart_. But all the danger in her life never came from the woods.

“Fucking psycho bitch!” Their howls crowded the air.

She let them get away. Though, not unscathed. Jess licked their blood from her lips with a certain level of satisfaction. With luck, they’d take it as a message.

Slowly, she turned to the other she-wolf cowering behind her. She was young, about her age, with thick red fur and big green eyes. A look of awe came over her.

“You saved me.” The red-furred wolf breathed a sigh wonder.

“Are you alright?” Jess nosed the wolf, motioning her to her feet.

“Yeah I think so.” Though clearly shaken, she seemed mostly unharmed. Another small victory.

“What’s your name?”

“Ashley.” She wagged her tail slightly. “And you’re…?”

“Jess.”

“Jess.” She smiled. “Thanks for saving me.”

They got to talking. About wolves who tried for more then they deserved. About traveling the woods alone. About hunting. Whatever. In an hour they were laughing about it. At some point Ashley mentioned a pack. Female-led, operated in the area, turned and born werewolves alike. Seven strong. Jess played along like she’d heard of plenty in her day. She knew she would join even before Ashley thought to offer.

 _Don’t go into the woods_. Jess pondered the statement as Ash led her to meet the rest of the pack. It was a warning applicable as literally as it was figuratively. _There are scary things out there. Dangerous things, things that could tear a little girl apart._ Jess smiled to herself. She should consider herself fortunate, the most deadly thing in these woods was her.

Oo0oO

**Author's Note:**

> Being a werewolf is hard man. Props to Jess for figuring out how to fight her own battles.  
> Part 2/8. Thank you all for reading. And I'll see you in the next story!


End file.
